Inter, the three faces (scanned by Milan) of Calhanoglu. Inzaghi spurs him on

What is the real Calhanoglu? The question arises again at the Nerazzurri, because the turkish’s changes in performance are evident, and are reflected in the data and numbers collected since the beginning of the season. First bewildered and indolent, then reactive and tremendously effective (both in terms of implementation and participation in the maneuver), then exhausted again. These are the three phases that the Nerazzurri midfielder has gone through so far, with inevitable repercussions also on the general performance of Inzaghi’s ranks. Between late autumn and early winter, not surprisingly the best time for a Calhanoglu elected “player of the month” twice in a row by the fans, Inter flew by grinding goals and victories to take the top of the table. Then, after the comeback knockout in the return derby, the conspicuous decline of the Turkish and (to be honest) of the whole midfield coincided with the loss of the lead in the standings and the double overtaking of Milan and Naples. Now Inzaghi is studying the moves to shock his number 20 and a tarnished median.

SLOW START

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The first piece of the season of the Turkish has in a certain sense anticipated the trend. The former Rossoneri had in fact been among the brightest in the summer outings, demonstrating a strong feeling with his new teammates and Inzaghi’s mechanisms between goals, assists and convincing performances. But once they started for real, except for the resounding debut seasoned by a goal and an assist at Genoa, the Turkish sent contradictory signals: badly against Verona and Sampdoria, on the bench against Bologna and Empoli, replaced after less than an hour of play against Atalanta and Sassuolo, not to mention the poor contribution in the Champions League with just two appearances (against Real Madrid and Shakhtar) for a total of 100 minutes on the pitch in the first four days. In the first eleven days of the championship, his contribution was limited to one goal and two assists, with 25 chances created and 13 total shots, but above all the performances lacking in intensity and the tendency to disappear with the passing minutes. Even with the alibi of the different position compared to the times of Milan.

THE EXPLOSION

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The first face to face against his former team, on November 7, however, marks the turning point: Calhanoglu takes the spotlight in the first leg derby by signing the momentary advantage on a penalty kick and unleashing a capital test despite the final draw decided by the own goal. by De Vrij. He challenges his former fans, takes a few pebbles from his shoes and breaks through the hearts of the Nerazzurri people. It is the launching pad that inaugurates two slap-up months, during which Calhanoglu will collect goals (5), assists (5) and a series of votes between 7 and 8 that make his average rating jump beyond 6, 5. In the same period, the Turkish player also considerably raises the average number of minutes spent on the pitch, going from 60 ‘in the first eleven days to over 76’ in the following twelve (leaving out the match against Lazio which was suspended due to suspension). In the golden period from 7 November to 5 February, the date of the return derby, Calha also increases the opportunities created (from 25 to 46) and the total shots (from 13 to 33), but above all she exhibits a perfect harmony with Brozovic and Barella. Inzaghi’s number 10 finally becomes the leading actor, combining substance and quality. The fan awards in November and December seem to be the definitive investiture for the Turkish, finally continuous and at the center of the Nerazzurri’s gears.

BRUSH BRAKING

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The scorching defeat in the return derby has instead rewound the tape in the first months of the season. The Nerazzurri blackout in the last twenty minutes of the game, the ones that led to the Rossoneri’s turnaround, ended up shaking the whole troop while Calhanoglu returned to wearing the less gaudy clothes of the first days of the championship. The subsequent disappointing tests against Napoli, Sassuolo and Genoa (interspersed with a good performance against Liverpool, also seasoned by a sensational crossbar), with a total haul of just one assist in the last six outings, denote the involution and the decline in performance of the turkish, which Inzaghi now aims to regenerate. It may be that the Turkish flexion simply reflects a period of low athletic brilliance. But the general fogging of the last few weeks also suggests the need to find new tactical solutions in the face of the countermeasures taken in the meantime by the rivals. The idea of ​​advancing Calha’s range of action to draw a 3-4-1-2, a solution that Inzaghi has been working on in the last few days, should also be read in this sense. The mission, in essence, is to free Calha’s game to get Inter back to fly at the rhythm of early winter.